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Amplified Mobility Platform
The Amplified Mobility Platform (or “AMP” Suit) is a distant descendant of the first military exoskeletons used on Earth in the mid 21st century. It was improved during military service in a myriad of combat theaters– from arctic to jungle to desert– over the decades. Sealed and pressurized models for toxic environments were developed as well. The suit is used extensively on the Moon and Mars colonies (where they are powered by fuel cells and/or monopropellant ceramic turbines). Its well-tested capabilities have proved invaluable in the deadly environment of Pandora. The human-operated walking machine magnifies the strength and mobility of a soldier or civilian worker while providing protection from military and environmental threats. Unlike fanciful designs in which weapons were integrated into limbs, the AMP suit is a multi-purpose machine, able to duplicate all functions of the infantry soldier. Since soldiers spend much of their time loading and unloading, and performing other tasks besides operating weapons, it was determined that the AMP suit needed the same functionality as a human: two legs, two arms, and highly dexterous hands. This allows not only a wide range of functions, but allows the suit to operate a variety of weapons systems. The servo-actuated limbs instantly respond to the driver's hand and leg movements inside the sealed cab, greatly magnifying the driver's strength. The legs are actuated by foot-pedals which amplify on an even larger ratio. In fact the leg sensors work slightly differently than the arms. Due to the confining spatial envelope around the feet and legs of the operator, the pedals cannot move in long strides, even on a scaled relationship. Instead, they sense the force and direction of the input and the onboard computer triggers a corresponding programmed movement of the legs. So the operator creates pressure and direction “cues” which trigger leg movements. The suit executes the “intention” of the pilot, calculating terrain factors and momentum to perform balanced movement. The arms on the other hand, operate in a directly scaled relationship to the operator’s arms, which allows better spatial positioning of the hands. The fingers and thumb are in direct 1:1 ratio. The servo armature has force feedback, and resists the movement of the operator’s arms when the suit’s limbs meet an obstacle. The operator can “feel” what the suit is doing. It is said that the suit can be operated in full darkness, by a skilled driver, by “feel” alone. Using the suit, a driver is able to punch through a tree trunk, lift a half ton cargo crate, or rapidly build prefab units without a construction crew. Its cannon obliterates anything in its targeting sights with a rain of armor-piercing rounds, at a 250 round per minute cyclic rate of fire. In the movie AMP suits are seen in many parts of the movie, where they are assigned mainly to base defense and patrol duties. Jake Sully is assigned to Col. Quaritch, and finds him at the hangar ready to enter into his AMP Suit. In the final battle, Col. Quaritch's soldiers used AMP Suits to quickly decimate the ranks of the ground Na'vi troops on direhorses, however they were unable to stand against the might of Hammerhead Titanotheres as they rammed right into the soldiers. Many AMP suits were either destroyed or disabled, with most of the AMP Suit drivers being killed, and the survivors being forced to retreat. After Jake Sully's forces Quaritch's ship down (during the final battle), Quaritch escapes in his AMP suit. During his journey to destroy the Tree of Souls he comes across the camp containg Jake's avatar pod. He attempts to destroy Jake's body but is challenged by Neytiri, riding a Thanator, and Jake (in his avatar form). His AMP Suit's rifle destroyed, Quaritch reveals a combat knife and kills the Thanator, trapping Neytiri under its lifeless body. When Jake gets into a firefight to save Neytiri, Quaritch finally defeats Jake when he breaches the protective glass of the camp building, exposing his human body to the pandoran atmosphere, and is about to kill him when Neytiri shoots two arrows into his chest, killing him. Weapon use Unlike more exotic designs in which weapons were integrated into limbs, the AMP suit is a multi- purpose machine, able to mimic all the abilities of the infantry soldier. This allows a wide range of functions, including the ability to operate a variety of weapons systems. The suit's weapons are even more lethal than its raw strength. It is heavily armored, and armed with a huge hip-fired GAU-19 30mm autocannon, as a rifle. The other non-standard weapon is a combat knife of self- sharpening diamond-hard ceramic. To match the scale of the suit, the blade is over three feet long and cuts through many metals, as well an optional flamethrower. Gallery File:AMP_Suit.png|Colonel Quaritch in an AMP Suit File:AMP_Suit_2.png|Quaritch's AMP Suit File:AMPsuit_Fighting.jpg|Quaritch possibly shooting a Na'vi. File:AMP Suit Action Figure Box Art.jpg Trivia James Cameron has an affinity for exoskeletons in his movies, in Aliens the climax of the film features a mech suit much like Avatar and Cameron's very first movie Xenogensis also featured a mech suit. As mentioned above the AMP is most likely based off the Power loader from another of James Camerons films Aliens. Category:Avatar Category:RDA Category:Machines Category:Vehicles Category:Weapons